When’s the right time?

I get really perplexed at times when I hear about a will of someone who’s no more in this world. It’s usually a lawyer reading out a piece of paper in which details are mentioned regarding the distribution of property & assets or nominating a heir etc. What’s confusing for me is the timing of the will. When did that person actually write it? How much time prior to his death did he feel like writing one? Did he actually know that his end was coming? Of course many people that have a strong link with ALLAH (SWT) do have an intuition regarding their death, but what about all the others that leave behind a will? I know many people get a will written and then periodically revisit and update it according to the changing situations and scenarios.

But the question is, ‘When is the right time for a person to start writing a will?’

We do have a strong belief that demise is something we cannot escape. Whoever is born in this world has to die as well. But what about those special people who die before their death?

I’m starting to sound creepy aren’t I?

I actually do not intend to mention any do’s and don’ts of writing a will in this post.

What I do intend is to try to focus on a very important facet of our lives which we’ve started to neglect generally these days. It is ‘IKHLAAQ’. In English we usually term it as ‘Virtue’ or ‘Manners’.

Life has a great connection with Ikhlaaq, and so does death. In fact, we can even simplify the complexities by breaking it down to just a few steps according to each scenario.

Pretty self-explanatory isn’t it?

My confusion with wills doesn’t end with the question about the timing. What is more confusing for me is that people are concerned about their assets and worldly properties even after their death and very few of them are worried about what they are going to take away with them when they depart from this world. I know it is extremely important in our religion to make sure your property and money gets well distributed among those who you leave behind but the importance of what you are going to carry along with you is often neglected.

People prepare wills and testaments and revisit them regularly to update them. We periodically check our bank account statements to make sure everything is smooth and fine. But do we revisit our virtues that often too?

Maybe not!

Because there are obstacles in the way, hurdles like ego and self-made set of laws that are far more stronger than the courage in our hearts to break them ourselves. It’s like committing suicide.

Those who die before their literal death do just that. They kill themselves each day by revisiting their diary of virtues. A diary in which rules like ‘forgive and forget’ exist. Clauses like ‘take no revenge’ reign supreme and transform this ordinary diary into a constitution for life.  It’s an arduous task to perform and more often easier said than done.

ALLAH (SWT) is watching us 24/7, all our deeds are being recorded in a well-maintained log book of our Aamaal. So why can’t we just keep this in mind and perform each deed just for the sake of ALLAH (SWT)?

Why can’t we revisit our diary of virtues and go back and ask for forgiveness from those whom we have hurt with our actions or words and ask for forgiveness from ALLAH (SWT)?

It requires a very big heart to apologize, and it requires even a bigger one when the apology is for something which you haven’t even done. This is what our religion teaches us to do. This is what our beloved Prophet (PBUH) taught us to do. Saying just a simple ‘sorry’ can become very difficult for many of us. Accepting someone’s apology is also not something which comes to us naturally.

Good virtues mean to be good with everyone, even if the other person doesn’t give you the proper respect. Do it for ALLAH (SWT), not for anyone else. Learn to say ‘Sorry’ and ‘it’s ok’. Keep it simple for yourself and leave everything else for ALLAH (SWT), He will surely do justice. That’s a promise.

The more you do for the sake of ALLAH (SWT) the more closer you get to Him.

So, don’t waste time asking yourself when’s the right time. Just look into your ‘Diary of Virtues’ and be the first one to resume ties with those who’ve gone far from you.

It’ll definitely serve better when you meet your Creator. InshaALLAH!

Hammad A. Mateen